Portfolio Update
BLACKROCK GREATER EUROPE INVESTMENT TRUST plc
All information is at 30 September 2014 and unaudited.
Performance at month end with net income reinvested
One Three One Three launch
Month Months Year Years (20 Sep 04)
Net asset value* (undiluted) -0.3% -4.4% 1.1% 54.6% 183.9%
Net asset value* (diluted) -0.3% -4.4% 1.8% 54.7% 184.2%
Share price -1.5% -5.9% 0.2% 48.4% 170.8%
FTSE World Europe ex UK -0.7% -2.4% 6.2% 53.4% 133.7%
Sources: BlackRock and Datastream
At month end
Net asset value (capital only): 233.86p
Net asset value (including income): 237.27p
Net asset value (capital only)*: 233.86p
Net asset value (including income)*: 237.27p
Share price: 225.00p
Discount to NAV (including income): 5.2%
Discount to NAV (including income)*: 5.2%
Subscription share price: 13.38p
Net cash: 0.3%
Net yield**: 2.7%
Total assets (including income): £258.2m
Ordinary shares in issue***: 108,828,058
Subscription shares: 20,647,848
Ongoing charges****: 0.9%
* Diluted for subscription shares and treasury shares.
** Based on a final dividend of 4.5p per share for the year ended 31 August
2013 (excluding special dividend) and an interim dividend of 1.5p per share for
the year ending 31 August 2014.
*** Excluding 5,429,676 shares held in treasury.
**** Calculated as a percentage of average net assets and using expenses,
excluding performance fees and interest costs, after relief of taxation for the
year ended 31 August 2013.
Sector Analysis Total Assets (%) Country Analysis Total Assets (%)
Financials 32.1 Switzerland 19.6
Industrials 16.2 France 17.2
Health Care 13.3 Germany 13.4
Consumer Services 8.7 Netherlands 9.4
Basic Materials 7.4 Italy 9.0
Oil & Gas 6.8 Sweden 7.3
Consumer Goods 5.7 Denmark 5.1
Technology 4.4 Ireland 4.4
Utilities 3.3 Russia 3.7
Telecommunications 1.8 Belgium 2.5
Net current assets 0.3 Turkey 2.4
----- Portugal 2.3
100.0 Finland 2.0
===== Hungary 0.9
Spain 0.5
Net current assets 0.3
-----
100.0
=====
Ten Largest Equity Investments (in alphabetical order)
Company
Airbus France
Bayer Germany
Eni Italy
GDF Suez France
ING Netherlands
Novartis Switzerland
Novo-Nordisk Denmark
Roche Switzerland
Total France
Zurich Insurance Switzerland
Commenting on the markets, Vincent Devlin, representing the Investment Manager
noted:
During the month, the Company's NAV returned -0.3% and the share price returned
-1.5%. For reference, the FTSE World Europe ex UK Index returned -0.7% during
the same period.
European equities had a mixed performance in September, continuing the trend of
underperformance versus other world equities. Economic data for the Eurozone
remained lacklustre and the European Central Bank's (ECB) attempts to reassure
markets through the announcement of a private quantitative easing (QE) purchase
programme did not reverse the prevailing negative sentiment. The ECB also cut
interest rates again (to 0.05%) in the hope of easing deflationary pressures and
the Euro weakened further, falling 4.1% against the Dollar. Small caps
underperformed large caps yet again (Stoxx 200 small cap index fell 1.9% in
Euros terms).
Sector allocation drove the performance during September while stock selection
also marginally contributed to returns. Having lower exposure to the consumer
goods sector contributed, as did having higher exposure to the health care
sector, although higher exposure to the industrials sector detracted from
returns.
Danish health care company, Novo Nordisk, was the Company's largest contributor
over the month due to one of their keys drugs being approved by the FDA with no
further trials needed. Similarly, a position in Bayer performed well after it
announced that it was going to sell its Material Science business which will
allow it to focus on its higher margin, Life Science business. However, not
holding French health care company Sanofi detracted from results after it
performed strongly.
Dutch semiconductor company, ASML, was a significant contributor after
announcing a second client had reached a significant production milestone using
the company's next generation EUV tool. This allowed the company's management
to reiterate their target production figures on the tool.
On a less positive note, Halk Bankasi and Garanti Bankasi significantly
detracted from returns. Expectations of US rate rises caused investors to take
profit in these stocks due to their link with the Turkish economy and the
current account deficit the country runs. However, this underperformance has
neutralized recently as rates remain stable and the falling oil price has
helped Turkey's current account deficit.
At the end of the month, the Company had higher exposure to health care,
financials, industrials, consumer services, oil & gas, and technology while
being underweight, consumer goods, telecoms, basic materials and utilities.
Outlook
Following a challenging first half of the year where we witnessed a vicious
rotation in Q2, sentiment in Europe has weakened over the summer with many
European forward indicators pointing out to a fragile recovery. Whilst the
recovery in Europe is more muted than initially expected, we believe that we
are unlikely to see a triple-dip recession in the region, given that the US
economic momentum continues to be strong and the ECB package of measures should
have a positive impact on growth over the next 12 months. While the ECB
measures directly address the supply of credit, most investors remain worried
about the lack of demand at both corporate and household levels. We think that
after a muted five years, there is some pent up demand in corporate spend, with
corporates' net investment intentions improving and credit demand encouraged by
current lower business loan rates. In addition, the TLTRO (Targeted Long Term
Refinancing Operation) has the potential to boost further the demand for
credit once the cheap funding costs are passed through to corporate loan rates.
The ECB's balance sheet expansion by EUr1trn (1 trillion Euros) should also help
address any risk of deflation by putting downward pressure on the Euro which has
already fallen c.9% against the Dollar so far this year. European valuations have
rerated over the last year and look to be in line with their long term average.
However, European equities are still underpriced versus the US on a Shiller PE
basis and in the bottom decile of the historical relative PBV (price to book value)
multiple range versus the world. Consensus earnings estimates have been cut this
year but they are beginning to inflect upwards from a low base with the Euro
weakness likely to provide a small tailwind to earnings, with over 50% of European
corporates' earnings coming from outside Europe.
16 October 2014
ENDS
Latest information is available by typing www.brgeplc.co.ukon the internet,
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terminal). Neither the contents of the Manager's website nor the contents of
any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager's website (or any other
website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.